Quality of life in gynecologic cancer survivors

Cancer survivorship is a process with both positive and negative aspects. Although much is known about survival rates and complications of therapy for gynecologic cancers, the issue of quality of life has been addressed only recently. The results of preliminary studies only prove how complex the issues are and how difficult they are to quantify. Quality of life is a concept that is at once obvious and ephemeral. There are as many definitions as there are observers. Factors contributing to a quality life also vary across the lifetime of an individual and take into account various physical, intellectual, and economic opportunities and limitations. Quality of life is influenced by outside forces and intrinsic capabilities. Human beings are enormously adaptable. An individual given major changes in life circumstances finds that what was once unacceptable becomes manageable and what was unappreciated takes on new meaning. That incredible ability to adapt is what makes life so precious and measuring its quality so difficult.